Best Credit Card Deal?

frostee on 11/11/2016 - 23:02

Hi all,

I have recently purchased a new home and will be moving in very shortly. As we now have a home loan with an offset account, I would like to use a credit card so we can just pay the bill at the end of each month and maximise the amount we have on the loan over the course of the month (interest calculated daily)

Anyway, I haven't had a credit card before, and am after a good offer with good rewards programs. Something that 'pairs well' with Flybuys would be great as me and partner use Flybuys offers frequently. Not sure on Amex and to be honest I don't know much about it.

What does OzB think?

Financial Credit Card

Comments

  • slikstick on 11/11/2016 - 23:34

    http://campaigns.anz.com/credit-cards/XsellNov16ARTA60V/?cid…

    Free return Virgin flight every year.
    60,000 Velocity points after $500 spend within 3 months.

    And FlyBuys can be transfered into Velocity Points, and you can earn Status Credits with them as well.

  • ChaseTheSun on 11/11/2016 - 23:55

    Go Amex.u will save so much with the cashbacks n points.
    Check the amex explorer n use a referral for 110k points or go for a zero annual fee amex card..check the amex wiki

  • NotAMoodle on 12/11/2016 - 00:12
    +1

    The Explorer card mentioned above is a solid card.

    I wouldn't recommend trying to focus on a Flybuys card, although they have some "good" features…Nothing compares to a proper Amex. The ANZ card mentioned above has a $225 annual fee also.

    1 other option for you is https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/255389 - 80,000 Velocity points when you use a referral link, plus a return free flight each year, 2 virgin lounge invites etc etc. $349 annual fee - but as ChaseTheSun mentioned, you honestly receive at least $349 in discounts each year to products you would normally buy anyway (Think Woolies/Dan's/Scoopon/Your local cafe participating in a shop small bargain/) there is a huge list.

    Good luck on your Amex journey :)

  • bluesky on 12/11/2016 - 05:31

    If you are not sure about Amex, consider getting a free Amex card to start with. That way you have nothing to lose and everything to gain. I have the first two of the 3 free Amex cards below:

    • Amex Essential
    • Qantas Discovery
    • Velocity Escape

    Which I am very happy about, for all the Amex cashback offers. And I have also posted about the Amex Essential card - full details here.

    • chocfrogs456 on 18/11/2016 - 11:05

      what's the difference between the amex essential and Qantas discovery? and why do you have both?

      • bluesky on 18/11/2016 - 13:19

        Qantas Discovery earns Qantas FF points - and good for those who redeem Qantas points for flights. I have seen OZB members value them at 1c/point or more, so that translates to a reward rate of 1% or more.

        I had the Qantas Discovery card first, but I was redeeming cash-equivalent rewards (supermarket gift cards) rather than flights. Based on this, the reward rate works out better on the Amex Essential (my post has info on this).

        I kept both cards for the cashback offers. Would have liked to have another :-), except some have said Amex generally allows only 2 credit cards per person.

      • bluesky on 18/11/2016 - 14:30

        Another difference: the Qantas Discovery card points go to your Qantas FF account automatically. With Amex Essential, you can collect points, and transfer to 8 airline programs :-

        • Air New Zealand Airpoints
        • Asia Miles
        • Emirates Skywards
        • Etihad Guest
        • Malaysian Airlines Enrich
        • Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer
        • THAI Royal Orchid Plus
        • Velocity Frequent Flyer
    • chocfrogs456 on 18/11/2016 - 11:21

      also does anyone know, these are listed on the referral links post - is there any referral bonus for these cards? They are listed on the page and people have put their referral details up, but I can't see what the bonus is if we do it this way?

      • bluesky on 18/11/2016 - 13:31

        Yes, applying through referral will get you more bonus points, and also the referrer points. For e.g.,

        • Qantas Discovery: You receive 12,500 Qantas Points when you spend $300 in the first 3 months of Card Membership and an additional 2,500 Qantas Points when you first spend on selected Qantas products and services in Australia. (Without referral: you receive 5,000 and 2,500 respectively).

        • Amex Essential: You get $75 if you apply online and spend $750 in the first 3 months (Without referral : you get $50 bonus).

        The signup points from using a referral are listed at the beginning of the Amex Referral wiki.

        Hope this helps.

        • chocfrogs456 on 19/11/2016 - 22:28
          +1

          thanks so much, so very helpful. I must have missed the signup points at the beginning fo the link. Apologies

  • The Champagne Mile on 12/11/2016 - 07:52
    +2

    I'd second the Explorer card: https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/262944

    IMO, it's currently the best bang for your buck in terms of sign on bonus (110,000 bonus points with a referral, which is equivalent to 82,500 frequent flyer points) and annual fee is fully offset by a $400 travel credit. Plus you get a flat 2 points per dollar for all earn except for Government spend - one of the best rates you'll find for any card.

    The Explorer uses the American Express Membership rewards program, whereby you can choose between a number of different airlines and hotel partners to transfer your points into (including flybuuys partners Etihad and Virgin) - so plenty of flexibility as you are not locked in to one airline.

    • Zaenille on 12/11/2016 - 13:30

      It doesn't include Qantas points does it?

      • The Champagne Mile on 12/11/2016 - 13:46

        No, list of airline partners is here: https://www.americanexpress.com/au/content/rewards/redeem/tr… (you can redeem points for all airline partners except Qantas with the Explorer card)

        It's not a big loss - if you transfer your points to Asia Miles (Cathay Pacific, who is a Oneworld partner), you can actually redeem Qantas flights, with lower points and taxes required than if you'd done so with Qantas. And Virgin is slightly cheaper for domestic redemptions, too. Otherwise, Krisflyer (Singapore Airlines) opens up some fantastic redemptions on Business and First class via their A380.

        • Zaenille on 14/11/2016 - 15:52

          Hey, was wondering ifyou knew if the $400 travel credit stacks? Or if you don't use it within the year, is it gone?

        • nickomac on 14/11/2016 - 17:00

          @Zaenille: there's an expiry date on the credit - if you don't use it you lose it :)

      • chocfrogs456 on 18/11/2016 - 10:51

        so what if you already have a bunch of Qantas points - can you transfer them into anything like the Asia miles? so all points end up in one place? or are they kind of locked to Qantas?

        • The Champagne Mile on 18/11/2016 - 12:44

          Once transferred in to Qantas, they are locked to Qantas, unfortunately. If you want flexibility of transferring, you'd do best to get a card that works on the American Express Membership rewards scheme (Platinum Edge, Explorer or David Jones AMEX).

        • chocfrogs456 on 19/11/2016 - 22:29

          @The Champagne Mile: thanks for clarifying :)

    • frostee on 13/11/2016 - 10:23

      Thank you for your help, this card sounds excellent for me. Signed up with your referral link :)

      Later on I might look at some Visa/Mastercard flavours as well just in case.

  • Skramit on 13/11/2016 - 10:18
    -2

    For those advocating Amex, that's all well and good until you go to use it at lots of shops that don't accept Amex or charge large merchant fees on Amex.

    IMO if you only want a single credit card account, a Visa or MasterCard is a far better option. Ideally one with a dual Visa/Amex card like most of the major banks offer. There's nothing worse than going to pay for something and "sorry we don't take Amex".

    • Skramit on 14/11/2016 - 13:02

      Wow…so all those who negged have never found somewhere that doesn't accept Amex??

      • NotAMoodle on 14/11/2016 - 16:08

        I think you'll find most who have been with Amex know exactly where Amex is accepted, and if not will just fire up their App with Geolocations enabled and find out where Amex is accepted around them and head there instead.

        Either way, they will most likely also have a Bank Issued Amex as a backup which comes with a Visa/MC as a just incase factor so they still have the points credited to their Amex account.

        • Skramit on 14/11/2016 - 16:13

          Yeah which is what I thought I suggested…. get a Visa/Amex combo card.

          shrug

          OzBargainers are harsh critics!

        • NotAMoodle on 14/11/2016 - 16:19

          @Skramit: Indeed they are!

  • blez77 on 13/11/2016 - 12:11
    Merged from What are the best credit card combinations?

    Hi all,

    I have a 28 Degrees Mastercard - WONDERFUL service, free card and the only drawback now is the extra fee for withdrawing money when overseas.

    I also have a free for life Platinum Westpac 55 Days Free Visa. (great for travel insurance if you spend $500 on flights/accom etc before leaving).

    and my NAB debit card.

    I don't have any rewards cards, and would love to get on that I could take most advantage of. I've also considered the AMEX Explorer (I like to travel) but I've never paid an annual fee for a card, so would need to be convinced!

    Please share your card combos and how you make the most out of them :)

    Many thanks in advance!!

    • NotAMoodle on 13/11/2016 - 19:32
      +1

      Here's one way to look at it. Annual fee $395. Travel credit given $400. They're paying you $5 to have the Amex.

  • The Champagne Mile on 13/11/2016 - 15:01

    The Explorer is indeed hard to beat - excellent sign on bonus (110,000 bonus points with a referral, which is equivalent to 82,500 frequent flyer points) and annual fee being fully offset by a $400 travel credit. The fact that you get a flat 2 points per dollar for all earn except for Government spend means you can use it pretty much everywhere AMEX is accepted knowing you're getting 1.5 ff points per dollar - one of the best point-per-spend offers out there (the exception being supermarket and petrol spend, where you could instead use a Platinum Edge instead to get 3 and 2 points on the Ascent MR program if inclined).

    Again, the Explorer offers plenty of flexibility with rewards transfer options to a number of airlines - the exception being Qantas, of course. As long as you are not wedded to collecting QF points (and why should you be, when you can transfer points to AsiaMiles and redeem cheaper Qantas rewards flights from that scheme?) then it's likely to be one of the best options out there for you.

  • Layla11 on 14/11/2016 - 04:04

    Hi sorry for this off topic, never owned a credit card though I do want one for every day basic spending

    Which would you recommend for me

    • The Champagne Mile on 14/11/2016 - 06:17

      See comments above re Explorer in terms of large sign on bonus and other card benefits. This is also a good option for everyday spend, as you'll get 2 Gateway points (or 1.5 frequent flyer points) for all spend except for Government charges.

    • bluesky on 14/11/2016 - 15:34

      Which card suits you depends on your circumstances. If you are after a free card which still provides benefits and earns rewards, there are three:

      • Qantas Discovery - best if you are collecting Qantas FF Points for redeeming flights.

      • Amex Essential - provides highest cash-equivalent rewards among the 3, and most flexible cashback. My post on this card here.

      • Velocity Escape - best if collecting Velocity points.

      Links above also allow you to compare with other Amex cards.

      Whichever Amex card you choose, applying via referrer usually gets you a higher bonus. The referrer list is here.

  • trufflesthepenguin on 15/11/2016 - 08:20

    What about the Coles mastercards, past reviews on Oz have said that it's a very good reward card earning 2pts (flybys) per $1 on all purchases. Anyone had much experience with it?

  • Robbiemat on 19/11/2016 - 04:21

    Just gonna add this to the conversation. https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/270113?page=2#comment
    Free for 1st year and having both AmEx and Visa is handy. No limit on QFF earned per month and great singing on Bonus FF. Just remember to cancel b4 the year is up.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join